Midnight Revelation
by sweetjujubee
Summary: On a midnight patrol of Hogwarts as Head Girl, Hermione Granger has a strange encounter with Draco Malfoy. She learns something new about Draco, but Draco doesn't even know she's watching him!


Title: **Midnight Revelation**   
  
Author's Notes: This is the first in a series of short fics. I'm just working my way up to my bigger projects. Right now, I'm laying the ground work for an eight part romance fic (two couples are involved, but I'll let you guess who they are...), and I have plans for another long fic which will be at least 15 chapters (_I hope_). I hope you enjoy this fic and will read my longer fic when I write them. Happy reading!   
  
Disclaimer: I don't know if you've heard of her, but there's this woman named J.K. Rowling who writes some series about a boy named Harry Potter. I know they're not that popular or anything, but this fic uses characters from her books. None of them belong to me. They all belong to this J.K. Rowling person.   
  
***   
  
The empty corridors echoed with each step Hermione Granger took. She hated the noisy plodding of her steps, and she stopped to lean against a bare stretch of wall. The castle was dark, and not a sound could be heard. Hermione was alone, just like she had been every night since her break up with Harry. That was nearly three weeks ago, and there was no going back to that relationship.   
  
Sighing at the thought of Harry, she quietly walked to the nearest window. No moon was out tonight, but hundreds of stars shone brightly enough to take its place. Feeling childish, Hermione began to match each star with a reason to have stayed with Harry.   
  
"I should have stayed with Harry because he cares about me. He doesn't judge me. He's kind. He's funny." She went on and on, naming one reason after the other until she saw one bright star shining more boldly than all of the others. She looked at it, smiling sadly. That star was different than the others, and it deserved a different kind of reason.   
  
"I shouldn't have stayed with Harry because I love someone else," she whispered. Her eyes began to water, and she hastily wiped them. It was the first time Hermione had been able to admit the real reason for her and Harry's breakup. They had both agreed that the "real" reason was that they were better off as friends, but she knew Harry hadn't meant it when he said it. He had only agreed with her so he wouldn't make thing more awkward between them. Hermione was certain that Harry still cared for her. She cared for him too, but only as a friend. Now, their relationship was nowhere near to how it had been before they dated. Although they were still friends, there was always an uncomfortable silence when they were alone.   
  
"Why do I love someone else? Harry was so perfect. Why do I love--" She stopped herself. If she said the name out loud, she felt as though the whole world might find out. She couldn't admit that to the world, let alone herself.   
  
She looked back at the bright star and sighed. "Draco Malfoy, why do I love you?"   
  
Hermione sniffled again, and wiped her eyes. She didn't want to be crying now. What if someone saw the Head Girl sobbing in the middle of her patrol?   
  
"Wait," thought Hermione. "Who's going to see me? Everyone's asleep!"   
  
With that thought in mind, Hermione was about to succumb to another wave of crying when she heard a sound. She was standing near the entrances to the dungeon, and her keen sense of hearing recognized the sound of footsteps on the castle's floors. Hermione stepped back into the shadows and waited. The footsteps were coming closer, and a voice was speaking, too.   
  
"Athena!" someone loudly whispered. A head appeared on the top of the stairs leading into the dungeons. It was a blonde haired boy wearing green, snake covered pajamas. The boy walked past a window and, by the light of the stars, Hermione identified him as   
  
"Draco Malfoy!" Hermione whispered to herself. Her heart began to race as she quietly slipped into a classroom. She carefully closed the door, leaving it open only a crack. Hermione kneeled by the door and held her breath as she heard Draco walk past the door.   
  
"Why are you hiding?" she asked herself. "Why aren't you out there giving him a detention and taking away fifty points?" A tiny little voice in the back of her head answered.   
  
"Because he is, after all, your secret love. You shiver when his name is mentioned. You feel your heart racing every time you look at him. You would tell him how you felt if it weren't for his muggle hating nature, and because you know he would never want you. For all of his faults, you don't know why you love him, but you do."   
  
Hermione sighed dejectedly and listened for Draco to leave.   
  
"Athena!" he whispered again.   
  
Hermione was confused. No one in Hogwarts was named Athena. Was Draco referring to the Greek god?   
  
Just then, she heard a mewing sound behind her. A tiny little kitten, obviously the runt of its litter, was perched on the edge of a desk. The kitten gave another loud mew and Hermione heard Draco stumble in the hall.   
  
"Athena?" Draco asked. The kitten mewed again. Moving quickly, Hermione scooted behind the teacher's desk and held her breath. Seconds later, Draco entered the room. "There you are, my little kitten," he said in a childish voice. "I knew my little girl couldn't hide from me."   
  
Hermione cautiously peered out from behind the desk and saw Draco playfully fondling his kitten. It was strange watching him be kind to a little kitten. Experience in Care of Magical Creatures told her that Draco only liked animals if he were abusing them. Now, she was actually watching him play with a kitten!   
  
"You know I love letting you wander the halls, but it's not safe for my favorite little girl."   
  
The little kitten mewed happily and licked his hand.   
  
"Shall we go back to the common room, Athena? We wouldn't want Hermione to find us here, would we?"   
  
Hermione held her breath. "Did he just use my first name?" she asked herself in shock.   
  
"Of course, she's not as beautiful or as kind as you are my little kitten, but she comes pretty damn close." He laughed like Hermione had never heard him laugh before. There was no evil tone in his voice, or any fake emotion. Draco was laughing for real, a sound almost too beautiful for Hermione to handle.   
  
A minute later, she heard footsteps and the sound of a closing door. Hermione stood up and stared dazedly at the door.   
  
"He just called me Hermione. He said I was beautiful. He was actually bing nice!" Hermione flew out of the door and headed for her common room.   
  
"Yes!" she screamed to herself. Maybe she had a chance with Draco Malfoy after all. 


End file.
